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Friday, March 23, 2012

This is it, guys! The event we've all been waiting for. The dystopian novel that's taken the world by storm is now a major motion picture, topped with excellent reviews. Good news for all fans, right? But now, on the opening day of what is sure to be the first "must see" movie of the year, I have a confession to make:

(Please don't freak out)

I haven't read The Hunger Games yet ...

... Ah, crud ...

Hold on, guys - let me explain!

I was given a copy as a birthday gift. It's two books away on my reading list. I'll get to it in due time. The question still begs: what took me so long? It's not that I avoided it. By all means, the premise is amazing. And while it has sci-fi elements, it's not the genre I write. I didn't start Harry Potter until the 4th book, either.

... (I'm digging my own grave here ...)

Wait a second - there's more!

There are tons of genres (and sub genres), right? Each are wonderful - and better when well written. If we know the genre (and market) we're writing for, it only makes sense to read what is selling in that genre/market. My recent WiPs are YA fantasy with fairytale elements and magical realism. Naturally, I read most of Shannon Hale, Gail Carson Levine, Patricia C. Wrede, and Jessica Day George (and others). Doing so helped me capture the setting, chemistry, and feel for such a novel. Woven had dozens of Beta readers. No one has not liked it (yet).

Does this mean my homework has paid off? Am I off the hook for not reading the hottest book since sunburn?

Don't get too comfortable, sonny ...

Since I write, I don't have the same luxury as a reader. I do read, don't get me wrong. Before my writing began, I read a book a week - mostly sci-fi - with a penchant for dogfights in space (funny my first trilogy turned out that way ...). You can bet when I start writing zombies, I'll read zombie. When I begin a MG series, I'll devour MG. Write what you find interesting. Read what matches.

(It can be helpful, when you query agents, to provide titles of recent novels that compare to yours)

Now, before Hunger Games, how big was the market for dystopia? George Orwell helped pioneer the genre. We have books like The Giver that helped maintain it. Now that The Hunger Games has had it's run, there are more new dystopia titles than I've ever seen in my lifetime, like Possession and Matched (wasn't too long ago when this was the case with vampires and werewolves ...).

... Pretend I didn't say that ...

Now he's knocking Twilight - Get him!

No I'm not ... okay, maybe a little ... *runs*

Next point: If we only read the kind of books we want to write, are we in danger of following trends? Not really, unless we take a popular book series, copy the formula, and present it as something different. Learning from books and maybe transcend the genre is more like it.

But for extra credit, we can read genres we don't write. Have you noticed my recent book reviews are not my genre? Contemporary?Urban fantasy? Not my bag, but I still liked and learned a lot from them. I didn't think for a second that I would enjoy reading YA fantasy until my wife challenged me to write one. Guess what? I love it now! And I might just be the only guy writing fairy tale-like fantasy? Is that stopping me? No way. Maybe, just maybe, I have something unique to con-tribute.

You know what? I bet you do, too. Reading leads us to books we want to write. Let's wow the world together!

We're good now ... right, guys?

* * *

This is not the rule, just my thoughts on the matter. Time isn't always on an author's side, making regular reading tough. Choose wisely. Pick books that interest you and don't worry if you haven't read the popular favorite. It's not like its going away anytime soon.

For me, I just read what interests me at the time, not necessarily because I'm writing something in that genre. Although I'm trying my hand at horror (eeek!), but I'm a wuss and can't do scary movies anymore, and I'm not sure what YA horror books there are out there. I almost bought The Woman in Black to read, but chickened out at the last minute!! What am I thinking? Lol!! :D Good for you for doing your homework! And yay, sooo excited for the Ender's Game movie!!

I also didn't read Harry Potter until 4 or 5 books were out; and I just started reading the Hunger Games. I don't like jumping on a bandwagon.I totally agree with you on reading what you write. I try to do that as well.

I was going to say! It's well done, but the voice of Scrimgeour at the beginning was a give away.

I'm waiting to see Hunger Games because I'm hesitant to fall in love with the films because I was so disappointed with the last book. Hubby and I will watch it in a couple of weeks when things calm down.

So true! There are so many books out there it would be impossible to read them all. so read the ones that work for you whether you're reading for the craft, the genre or just for fun. There are a lot of "popular" books I've never got around to.

I just read Hunger Games over the Christmas break. My daughter just read it last week. And my other daughter says she's not interested. I've never read Harry Potter nor Twilight. I tried, but I couldn't get into either of them.

I'm looking forward to seeing the Hunger Games tonight. It looks like a great movie.

Don't worry about not having read the book yet. I didn't read any of the Harry Potter books until I watched the first movie. You'll get to it when you have time.

And I read pretty much anything that I think will enlarge me as a person. From biographies to fantasy to blogs. I believe if we don't read widely that we cannot fully capture the stories we want to tell.

I resisted buying and reading them until just a couple weeks ago despite everyone I know telling me how incredibly awesome they are. Then as the movie got closer to being out, I realized that no way am I watching a movie without reading the book first. I was going to only read that first book, but, well it IS an incredible story and I couldn't help myself. I finished all three books in 3 days.

I loved and hated them. Dystopian novels are not my general preference. The gut wrenching sadness and hopelessness I feel when I read them just isn't cool. So I usually avoid them. This one got me in the gut...as I expected it would. I had a hard time reading the 3rd book. It was fabulously written, and put my emotions through the ringer. Ugh. Great books.

Great post! I did read the Hunger Games, but I can't say it was my favorite, and isn't really my genre of choice. I think that mostly reading what you want to write is a good way to keep yourself focused on your writing. And if not...well, you'll probably enjoy your forte more than another book that is outside of your norm.

Nice post David! I must say I have been urged to read Hunger Games multiple times but I haven't picked it up yet. I have book 2 in my backpack but I haven't started it yet till I start book 1 :P Anyways, don't worry. Your not alone :)

I'm pretty much in the same boat you are. I've read the same stuff and not read the same stuff). There's just so much out there, which I figure is a good thing. I forgot about _Ender's Game_ coming out though, thanks for the reminder:)

Ah, David. Having not read The Hunger Games is no crime. Not yet at least, unless the world turns upside down and decides that it is required reading for your citizenship. But I'd like to think we haven't gotten that far off kilter.

You and I might both want to run from the Twi-mob. I felt kind of horrible for having to tell a raving fan that I was utterly turned off by most of the book. She didn't speak to me much after that. But I got back in her good graces when I told her that like or dislike of the book didn't make me admire Stephenie Mayer any less. I was glad she rode that gravy train and give her props for riding it for as long as possible. :-)

Funny enough, I don't write what I read *hides* I know it's important, because you need to be well versed with what you're competing against, but I tend to like adult novels more than YA, LOL. But my voice is very YA, so we'll see how this works for me. You'll enjoy Hunger Games--the first book in particular :D

I have this automatic desire to not like popular things. I had to work hard to overcome it. I didn't read Harry Potter until the 6th book. And I did it through gritted teeth... and I read all 6 books in about 4 days.

I thought about reading the book, but I didn't for the exact same reason I quit reading Ender's Game. I find it really hard to read stories where people mess with kids, most likely because of my job...

I haven't read The Hunger Games either; probably won't. Just like I haven't read Harry Potter or The Twilight series (I started the first book, then stopped. Just not my style of writing.) While I don't nomally read dystopian literature, I'm currently reading 1984. Orwell is a master. His writing style is amazing.

While I have read the book (and liked it), I am not too excited to run and see the movie in the theater. Like most movies made from books, I know I will be a little disappointed. the theaters are just too expensive for me to be disappointed!

I agree! It's so very important to be well-read in the genre we write, but it's also important to read in genres we DON'T write. There is something to be learned from every author. The more we read, the more we learn!

And when you do get to HG, you'll think, Why the heck did it take me so long to read this? Just like I thought when I started HP the summer book 7 came out. ;)

I put it off for a long time because it's not my genre and I had so many other books to read. But then the movie previews came out, so it was important that I read the book first. Now I'm hooked on both.

Confession time: I never finished the Twilight Series and I've never read a Harry Potter book.

YA Paranormal Fantasy

Welcome to The Cosmic Laire, the official site of fantasy and science fiction author, David Powers King. David's works include WOVEN, THE UNDEAD ROAD, and FULL DARK: AN ANTHOLOGY. He currently resides in the Mountain West with his wife and 4 children. Click About to learn more.